2020–21 Financial Statements

1. Authority and objectives

The Office of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner of Canada (the Office) was set up to administer the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act, which came into force on April 15, 2007. The Office is established under the authority of Schedule I.1 of the Financial Administration Act and is funded through annual appropriations. The Commissioner is accountable for, and reports directly to Parliament on the results achieved.

The Office is mandated to establish a safe, independent, and confidential process for public servants and members of the public to disclose potential wrongdoing in the federal public sector. The Office also helps to protect public servants who have filed disclosures or participated in related investigations from reprisal. The disclosure regime is an element of the framework which strengthens accountability and management oversight in government operations.

Disclosure and Reprisal Management Program

The objective of the program is to address disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints of reprisal and contribute to increasing confidence in federal public institutions. It aims to provide advice to federal public sector employees and members of the public who are considering making a disclosure and to accept, investigate and report on disclosures of information concerning possible wrongdoing. Based on this activity, the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner will exercise exclusive jurisdiction over the review, conciliation and settlement of complaints of reprisal, including making applications to the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Tribunal which determines whether reprisals have taken place and orders appropriate remedial and disciplinary action.

Internal Services

Internal Services are groups of related activities and resources that are administered to support the needs of programs and other corporate obligations of an organization. Internal Services include only those activities and resources that apply across an organization, and not those provided to a specific program. The groups of activities are Management and Oversight Services; Communications Services; Legal Services; Human Resources Management Services; Financial Management Services; Information Management Services; Information Technology Services; Real Property Management Services; Materiel Management Services and Acquisition Management Services.

2. Summary of significant accounting policies

These financial statements have been prepared using the Government of Canada's accounting policies stated below, which are based on Canadian public sector accounting standards. The presentation and results using the stated accounting policies do not result in any significant differences from Canadian public sector accounting standards.

Significant accounting policies are as follows:

a) Parliamentary authorities

The Office is financed by the Government of Canada through Parliamentary authorities. Financial reporting of authorities provided to the Office do not parallel financial reporting according to generally accepted accounting principles since authorities are primarily based on cash-flow requirements. Consequently, items recognized in the Statement of Operations and Net Financial Position and in the Statement of Financial Position are not necessarily the same as those provided through authorities from Parliament. Note 3 provides a reconciliation between the bases of reporting. The planned results amounts in the Expenses section of the Statement of Operations and Net Financial Position are the amounts reported in the Future-Oriented Statement of Operations included in the 2021–22 Departmental Plan. The planned results amounts in the Government funding section of the Statement of Operations and Net Financial Position and in the Statement of Change in Net Debt were prepared for internal management purposes and have not been previously published.

Liquidity risk is the risk that the Office will encounter difficulty in meeting its obligations associated with financial liabilities. The Office’s objective for managing liquidity risk is to manage operations and cash expenditures within the appropriation authorized by Parliament or allotment limits approved by the Treasury Board.

Each year, the Office presents information on planned expenditures to Parliament through the tabling of Estimates publications. These estimates result in the introduction of supply bills (which, once passed into legislation, become appropriation acts) in accordance with the reporting cycle for government expenditures. The Office exercises expenditure initiation processes such that unencumbered balances of budget allotments and appropriations are monitored and reported on a regular basis to help ensure sufficient authority remains for the entire period and appropriations are not exceeded.

Consistent with Section 32 of the Financial Administration Act, the Office’s policy to manage liquidity risk is that no contract or other arrangement providing for a payment shall be entered into with respect to any program for which there is an appropriation by Parliament or an item included in estimates then before the House of Commons to which the payment will be charged unless there is a sufficient unencumbered balance available out of the appropriation or item to discharge any debt that, under the contract or other arrangement, will be incurred during the fiscal year in which the contract or other arrangement is entered into.

The Office’s risk exposure and its objectives, policies and processes to manage and measure this risk did not change significantly from the prior year.

b) Net Cash Provided by Government of Canada

The Office operates within the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF), which is administered by the Receiver General for Canada. All cash received by the Office is deposited to the CRF, and all cash disbursements made by the Office are paid from the CRF. The net cash provided by Government of Canada is the difference between all cash receipts and all cash disbursements, including transactions between departments of the Government of Canada.

c) Due from the Consolidated Revenue Fund

Amounts due from the CRF are the result of timing differences at year-end between when a transaction affects authorities and when it is processed through the CRF. Amounts due from the CRF represent the net amount of cash that the Office is entitled to draw from the CRF without further authorities to discharge its liabilities.

d) Expenses

Expenses are recorded on the accrual basis:

• Transfer payments are recorded as expenses when authorization for the payment exists and the recipient has met the eligibility criteria or the entitlements established for the transfer payment program.
• Vacation pay and compensatory leave are accrued as the benefits are earned by employees under their respective terms of employment.

e) Employee future benefits

• Pension benefits: Eligible employees participate in the Public Service Pension Plan, a multi-employer pension plan administered by the Government of Canada. The Office’s contributions to the Plan are charged to expenses in the year incurred and represent the total Office obligation to the Plan. The Office’s responsibility with regard to the Plan is limited to its contributions.
  Actuarial surpluses or deficiencies are recognized in the financial statements of the Government of Canada, as the Plan’s sponsor.
• Severance benefits: The accumulation of severance benefits for voluntary departures ceased for applicable employee groups. Due to the size of the Office, the remaining obligation for employees who did not withdraw benefits is calculated using employee specific information.

f) Accounts receivable

Accounts receivable are stated at the lower of cost and net recoverable value. A valuation allowance is recorded for accounts receivable where recovery is considered uncertain. Credit risk is the risk that one party to a financial instrument will cause a financial loss for the other party by failing to discharge an obligation. The Office is not exposed to significant credit risk. Accounts receivable are due on demand. The majority of accounts receivable are due from other Government of Canada departments and agencies where there is minimal potential risk of loss. The maximum exposure the Office has to credit risk equal to the carrying value of its accounts receivable.

g) Tangible capital assets

All tangible capital assets and leasehold improvements are recorded at their acquisition cost. Amortization of tangible capital assets is done on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful life of the asset as follows:

h) Related Party Transactions

Inter-entity transactions

The Office is related, in terms of common ownership, to all government departments, agencies, and Crown corporations. The Office enters into transactions with these entities in the normal course of business, which are measured at the carrying amount, except for the following:

1. Inter-entity transactions are measured at the exchange amount when undertaken on similar terms and conditions to those adopted if the entities were dealing at arm’s length, or where costs provided are recovered.
2. Goods or services received without charge between commonly controlled entities, when used in the normal course of the operations and would otherwise have been purchased, are recorded as revenues and expenses at the carrying amount. The Government also uses central agencies and common service organizations so that one department performs services for all other departments and agencies without charge. The costs of these services, such as the payroll and cheque issuance services provided by Public Services and Procurement Canada are not included in the Office’s Statement of Operations and Net Financial Position.

Other related party transactions

Related parties also include key management personnel (KMP) having authority and responsibility for planning, directing and controlling the activities of the Office, as well as their close family members. The Office has defined its KMP to be the Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner, Chief Financial Officer, General Counsel and Director of Operations.

These related party transactions are recorded at the exchange amount.

i) Measurement uncertainty

The preparation of these financial statements requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported and disclosed amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses reported in the financial statements and accompanying notes. The estimates are based on facts and circumstances, historical experience, general economic conditions and reflect the Office's best estimates of the related amount at the end of the reporting period. The most significant items where estimates are used are the liability for vacation pay and compensatory leave, employee future benefits and the useful life of tangible capital assets. Actual results could significantly differ from those estimated. Management’s estimates are reviewed periodically and, as adjustments become necessary, they are recorded in the financial statements in the year they become known.

3. Parliamentary authorities

The Office receives its funding through annual parliamentary authorities. Items recognized in the Statement of Operations and Net Financial Position and the Statement of Financial Position in one year may be funded through parliamentary authorities in prior, current or future years. Accordingly, the Office has different net results of operations for the year on a government-funding basis than on an accrual-accounting basis. The differences are reconciled in the following tables:

a) Reconciliation of net cost of operations to current year authorities used

b) Authorities provided and used

4. Accounts payable and accrued liabilities

Accounts payable and accrued liabilities are due within six months of year-end.

5. Employee future benefits

a) Pension benefits

The Office's employees participate in the Public Service Pension Plan (Plan), which is sponsored and administered by the Government of Canada. Pension benefits accrue up to a maximum period of 35 years at a rate of 2% per year of pensionable service, times the average of the best five consecutive years of earnings. The benefits are integrated with Canada/Québec Pension Plans benefits and they are indexed to inflation.

Both the employees and the Office contribute to the cost of the Plan. Due to the amendment of the Public Service Superannuation Act following the implementation of provisions related to Economic Action Plan 2012, employee contributors have been divided into two groups: Group 1 relates to existing plan members as of December 31, 2012, and Group 2 relates to members joining the Plan as of January 1, 2013. Each group has a distinct contribution rate.

The 2020–21 expense amounts to $340,244 ($303,551 in 2019–20). For Group 1 members, the expense represents approximately 1.01 times (1.01 times in 2019–20) the employee contributions and, for Group 2 members, approximately 1 time (1 time in 2019–20) the employee contributions.

The Office's responsibility with regard to the Plan is limited to its contributions. Actuarial surpluses or deficiencies are recognized in the consolidated financial statements of the Government of Canada, as the Plan’s sponsor.

b) Severance benefits

Severance benefits provided to the Office’s employees were previously based on an employee’s eligibility, years of service and salary at termination of employment. However, since 2011 the accumulation of severance benefits for voluntary departures progressively ceased for substantially all employees. Employees subject to these changes were given the option to be paid the full or partial value of benefits earned to date or collect the full or remaining value of benefits upon departure from the public service. As at March 31, 2021, substantially all settlements for immediate cash-out were completed and the remaining obligation will be disbursed upon departure from the public service. Severance benefits are unfunded and, consequently, the outstanding obligation will be paid from future authorities.

The changes in the obligations during the year were as follows:

6. Accounts receivable and advances

7. Tangible capital assets

Cost

Accumulated amortization

Net book value

The "Acquisition of tangible capital assets" and the "Decrease in accounts payables and accrued liabilities" presented in the Statement of Cash Flow exclude an amount of $114,348 in 2020–21, as the amount relates to capital investing activities in 2020–21 that remain to be paid as at March 31, 2021. For 2019–20, there were no remaining amount to be paid in capital investing activities as at March 31, 2020.

8. Contractual obligations

The nature of the Office's activities can result in some large multi-year contracts and obligations whereby the Office will be obligated to make future payments when the services or goods are received. Significant contractual obligations that can be reasonably estimated are summarized as follows:

9. Related party transactions

a) Services provided without charge by common service organizations

During the year, the Office received services without charge from common service organizations. These services provided without charge have been recorded at the carrying value in the Office’s Statement of Operations and Net Financial Position as follows:

b) Other transactions with related parties

The Office incurred expenses from transactions in the normal course of business with other government departments, agencies and Crown corporations. A portion of these expenses comes from shared services agreements with other government departments related to the provision of Internal Services including Finance, Human Resources, Administrative and Information Technology services. These expenses exclude services received without charge, which are already disclosed in a). Contractual obligations with related parties, as shown in note 8 above, amount to a total of $962,019 over the next five years.

10. Segmented information

Presentation by segment is based on the Office's core responsibility. The presentation by segment is based on the same accounting policies as described in the Summary of significant accounting policies in note 2. The following table presents the expenses incurred for the core responsibilities, by major object of expenses. The segment results for the period are as follows: